Alum Al Franken Comes Under Fire for Allegations on SNL

It seems that Saturday Night Live has learned its lesson after foregoing a chance to respond to the bevy of sexual assault allegations lodged against Harvey Weinstein a few weeks back. And just in time, seeing as the latest celebrity to be condemned for inappropriate behavior is one of the show's own: Senator Al Franken, who wrote and starred on the program from 1975 to 2008, when his political ambitions came to light and he narrowly won a Minnesotan senate seat as a Democrat. Even though Franken's probably still got some friends at the Rockefeller Center studio, "Weekend Update" hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che didn't feel any need to hold back.

"Thursday is Thanksgiving, and there's so much to be thankful for this year, unless you're a human woman," Jost said, alongside a photo of Franken that also included fellow alleged assaulters Bill Cosby, senate candidate Roy Moore, Louis C.K., Donald Trump, and Harvey Weinstein.

"Senator Al Franken is being accused of sexual misconduct on a 2004 USO tour by Leeann Tweeden, who posted this photo of Franken apparently groping her breasts while she was asleep. Now, I know this photo looks bad, but it also is bad," Jost continued. "And, sure, this was taken before Franken ran for public office, but it was also taken after he was a sophomore in high school. It's pretty hard to be like, 'Oh, come on, he didn't know any better. He was only 55.'"

Che did chime in, though, to point out the inequitable response to Franken's allegations from the White House, saying, "without even looking you can bet that President Trump called out Al Franken and not Roy Moore, who's accused of way worse ... But Franken's a liberal, and Trump and Moore are conservatives."

But with so many men whose behaviors have landed them on the public enemies list, the subject couldn't linger on Franken for long. Next up to the plate was Jeremy Piven, who hosted SNL in 2007. In response to the spate of allegations about his sexual misconduct, Jost said, "More than a dozen women have accused actor Jeremy Piven of sexual assault spanning more than 30 years. The allegations were revealed in the shocking documentary Entourage." Lloyd would definitely laugh at that joke.